Mamata accuses DVC of reckless water release during Puja; PSU rejects charge

Kolkata, Oct 3 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday accused the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) of releasing water "recklessly and without prior intimation" to the state government, and slammed the central PSU for what she termed a "deliberate ploy" to create a flood-like situation in south Bengal districts during the Durga Puja festivities.

The central PSU, however, denied the charge, saying that discharges were capped at around 70,000 cusecs, well below the 1.3 lakh cusecs that state officials had agreed the downstream channels could handle, and that all intimation protocols had been followed.

In a strongly worded social media post, Banerjee described the initial release of 65,000 cusecs of water on Bijoya Dashami on Thursday as "reckless" and "shameful", and said it had put "millions of lives in Bengal in immediate peril." Later, she claimed in another post that the DVC released more than 1,50,000 cusecs of water by Friday evening.

"Bijoya Dashami marks the close of Durga Puja - a time for joy, cheer and renewed hope. Yet, instead of allowing the people of West Bengal to conclude the festival in peace, the DVC released 65,000 cusecs of water without any prior notice to the state. This reckless act is nothing short of an attempt to inflict misery during our sacred festivities," she said.

Calling it "absolutely unacceptable", the chief minister alleged that the release amounted to a "disaster manufactured by the DVC".

"By releasing water without intimation, the DVC has placed millions of lives in Bengal in immediate peril. This is not a natural calamity, it is a disaster manufactured by the DVC," Banerjee asserted.

Issuing a defiant warning, she added, "Let me be clear: I will not allow anyone to carry out a Bisarjan (immersion) of Bengal. Every conspiracy against our people will be resisted with full force. Truth will prevail over deceit and good will triumph over evil. Joy Maa Durga!" Later, Banerjee alleged that the discharge had risen and accused the agency of aggravating the crisis.

"The latest update on the unilateral and wilful release of water by DVC is that they have by the evening today released more than 150,000 cusecs of water from Maithon and Panchet dams etc to flood our West Bengal during festival times.

"This is a deliberate ploy to unleash disaster on us in order to inflict pain on millions when they are still busy in the Pujas. Shameful, intolerable, unacceptable! We protest!!" she wrote in another post.

Responding to the allegations, DVC officials rejected the charges of unilateral decision-making and mismanagement.

A senior official, on condition of anonymity, said that the DVC, to avoid damage to life and property, restricted releases to around 70,000 cusecs, despite the downstream channels being capable of handling up to 1.3 lakh cusecs as per a pre-monsoon meeting with state officials in June.

All procedures were followed to inform the state administration, he said.

He explained that water release decisions are taken by a committee, in which the state government’s irrigation chief engineer is a member.

"We regularly send our recommendations by mail, but the state representatives do not respond. Once a decision is taken, the release happens six hours later, and all district magistrates and the state irrigation secretary are informed. The updates are also circulated through a WhatsApp group," the official added.

"In future too, we will continue efforts to keep the release within 70,000 cusecs unless there is heavy inflow from upstream," the official stated.

Speaking to the media, TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee too accused the DVC of triggering what he called a "man-made flood" to endanger lives in Bengal.

Claiming that the release of water during Durga Puja was politically motivated, he alleged the BJP has a "habit" of creating such crises.

"Since the (2026 assembly) polls are around, they are doing it again and did not even spare the Durga Puja. They are putting people's lives in peril," he said.

The TMC MP claimed that no prior intimation or coordination had been done with the state government.

"Now they will claim that state officials are involved too…. They intend to submerge Bengal because Bengal did not vote for them," he said, adding that the people would give them a "befitting reply".

State irrigation department officials confirmed that the water released from Maithon and Panchet reservoirs had risen to 70,000 cusecs by Friday, with additional discharges of 59,075 cusecs from the Durgapur Barrage along with flows through its irrigation canals.

"Rainfall is continuing in Jharkhand, leading to discharge there. Water from nearby rivers and streams is also flowing into the Damodar, pushing up its level. Hence, the discharge from Durgapur Barrage has been increased," an official said.

With the IMD predicting heavy to very heavy rainfall in Jharkhand and West Bengal due to a depression, officials said that inflows into the Damodar river could rise further, forcing the DVC to step up releases.

The water discharge has triggered fears of fresh inundation in several south Bengal districts already reeling under continuous rain.

District administrations of Purba and Paschim Medinipur, Purba and Paschim Bardhaman, Hooghly, Howrah and Bankura have been put on high alert and asked to monitor vulnerable riverbank zones. PTI PNT BSM NN